Houston (48-25) relied on a number of contributors to complete a 10-0 road trip through Texas, Oakland and Kansas City, with Correa following Evan Gattis, Max Stassi, Brian McCann and an assortment of others in striking the decisive blow to keep the line moving.
The Astros have benefited from a resurgent offense and exceptional work from their bullpen to set a pace as the hottest team in the majors, with their stellar road trip underscoring their might.
“This was incredible just by the way we played and the way we completed games,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “Obviously, winning every game is incredible. We did it in a lot of different ways and so we want to keep the same intent and the same mentality that we’ve been playing with. It’s been pretty remarkable.
“It’s hard to put into words. It’s been somebody different every night. We’ve had good pitching; we’ve had good defense. We’ve rallied late, we’ve blown guys out early, so we’re in a good place right now and we’ve got to continue to do that going home.
“It was a long trip. We played in some hot weather. It’s a pretty resilient group to keep playing well and coming up with enough runs to win.”
Now the Astros return to Minute Maid Park to start a nine-game homestand on Monday against the Tampa Bay Rays. After improving to 29-11 on the road, the Astros are aiming to elevate their play at home, where they’ve been only slightly better than pedestrian (19-14).
“Hopefully, we can go home and keep grinding and keep playing the way we’ve been playing,” Correa said.
Right-hander Gerrit Cole (8-1, 2.40 ERA) gets the starting nod for the Astros. Cole will face the Rays for the first time in his career. He allowed a season-high four runs in his previous start, working six innings and getting six strikeouts in a 13-5 win at Oakland on June 13.
Cole is 4-0 with a 3.89 ERA in his previous six starts, surrendering eight home runs during that stretch.
Right-hander Ryan Stanek (1-1, 2.55) will start the series opener for the Rays. It will mark the sixth start and 16th appearance of the season for Stanek, who has yet to face the Astros.
After working out of the bullpen three times in his first four appearances this month, Stanek logged consecutive abbreviated starts against the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees on June 12 and 16 , respectively.
Stanek’s outing against the Astros will mark the third consecutive bullpen day for the Rays (33-38), who claimed the finale of a four-game set in New York on Sunday behind 4 2/3 innings from right-hander Wilmer Font and four additional relievers.
The Rays welcomed back shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria from the 10-day disabled list, with Hechavarria finishing 3-for-4 with a run scored against the Yankees.
Hechavarria, who missed nearly a month with a right hamstring strain, is expected to play behind rookie Willy Adames and could be showcased as a trade chip in advance of the nonwaiver trade deadline.
TORONTO — The Toronto Blue Jays, who have had trouble winning at home for stretches this season, have a chance for their second consecutive series sweep at the Rogers Centre,
The Blue Jays defeated the Washington Nationals 2-0 on Saturday afternoon and have won the first two contests of the three-game interleague series.
It was Toronto’s first shutout since Aug. 10, a stretch of 117 games.
Toronto (32-38) will send out right-hander Sam Gaviglio (2-2, 3.66 ERA) to try for the sweep Sunday afternoon. Washington (37-30) will counter with right-hander Tanner Roark (3-7, 3.63).
The Blue Jays swept the Baltimore Orioles in four games in their previous home series June 7-10 before dropping three in a row to the Tampa Bay Rays from Monday through Wednesday at Tropicana Field. Their home record for the season is 18-19.
Toronto’s six-game win streak at home followed an 1-10 drought at the Rogers Centre. The six-game win streak is their longest at home since they won seven in a row July 2-8, 2016.
The Nationals, meanwhile, have been shut out three times in their past five games and are in a 2-5 funk after an 11-4 surge.
“We’ve had some pitches to hit, we just didn’t hit them,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez said. “It’s surprising, but it happens. You run into good pitchers.”
Washington outfielder Bryce Harper was 0-for-4 with two strikeouts Saturday and is in a 1-for-11 drought with three walks. He also has been hit twice by pitches.
“I watch him and he gets a little frustrated,” Martinez said. “The biggest is just to keep him level-headed and let him go out there and just do his thing. He is one of the best players in the game, he’s going to carry us, I know he is.
“He had a couple of pitches to hit (Saturday) and fouled them back. Usually, he typically hits those pitches , and hits them really hard and really far.”
Said Harper: “They’ve thrown a lot of heaters the past two days, more than I think as a team we’ve generally seen. But you’ve got to make adjustments and get pitches we can hit and not miss them.
“Good pitching beats good hitting any day of the week. That’s baseball … just have to keep grinding, keep going. I’m feeling great, just missing pitches.”
The Blue Jays, meanwhile, are getting production from second baseman Devon Travis, who hit a two-run homer for the second game in a row Saturday. He was coming back from knee surgery last season and was being given one day off every three games.
“The plan was going into the season that we’d protect his knee a little bit until he started feeling good and we could extend that a little bit,” Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. “We’re at that point now. The kid has always hit, he’s a real good hitter, everybody knows it’s just a matter of time. He might have been a little tentative early in the year, too, conscious of his knee a little bit. But two big games in a row here and he’s been really good since he’s come back.”
He had been optioned to Triple-A Buffalo on April 29 as he struggled and returned May 22. In his past 18 games, he is batting .333 with one double, one triple, three home runs and eight RBIs.
Roark allowed three runs, six hits and two walks in six innings in a 3-0 loss to the New York Yankees on Tuesday. He has never faced the Blue Jays.
Gaviglio gave up five runs and seven hits in 3 1/3 innings Monday in a loss to Rays after shutting out the Yankees in seven innings of a no-decision June 6. He has one career start against Washington and took the loss on May 24, 2017, when he was with the Seattle Mariners. He allowed five runs (one earned) and six hits in six innings in the game at Washington.Статистика: Публикувано на от hongwei28 — 10 Яну 2019 03:44
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